Blood Debt
by Liraeyn
Summary: A message from her past leaves Ziva with the realization that she may not be as alone as she once thought. But what does this mean for her new life? And what does it mean when she finds her nemesis at long last?
1. Renewal

I own none of the following: NCIS, the characters thereof, the ideas contained therein, the medical concepts, procedures, or techniques which may be performed in this story, or anyone relating to such concepts, procedures, or techniques.

Enough legalese already?

Okay, I'm going to take a leaf out of ForeignMusicLyrics' book and apologize for starting another story when I've got two already actively in the works. Yes, there will be updates soon. No, I don't have a timetable. No, I haven't forgotten you.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"Hello, beautiful."

Ziva didn't even bother reacting to the ubiquitous narcissistic, ugly, smelly, drunk _something_ who thought she couldn't resist him. Another sip from her drink served to wash away the unpleasant olfactory conglomeration of body odor, decomposing trash, and miscellaneous alcohol. Somewhere, a distant, faded memory made itself known, exuding the knowledge that one's sense of smell switched off after prolonged exposure to the same scent. Well. She wasn't planning on spending that long around this guy, anyway.

"You know, beautiful, if you keep ignoring all the great guys like me, you're just going to end up alone, in a house full of junk and cats, and nobody's going to care-"

Not in the mood to bother arguing, Ziva dumped what was left of her drink in his lap, put the glass on the bar, and walked out without another word, swearing and laughter erupting behind her.

"You bitch! I'll get you for this!"

"Amazingly eloquent, there."

"Nice job, girlie. I've been wanting to do that for a long time."

A still-mostly-sober girl by the door gave her a thumbs-up and smiled. Back at the bar, smashing glass alerted Ziva to the growing ruckus. _Yep, time to go._

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

Ziva had consumed enough alcohol that, by the time she walked into her apartment, she'd gone from "this is fun", through "gotta stop", and straight into "meh". She kicked off her shoes and flopped on her couch, too tired to even walk to her room twenty feet away.

As she lay in the dark, waiting for sleep, a terrible sense of loneliness fell over her like night. It didn't make any sense. She'd just left a crowded pub, with a ton of fans by the time she'd left, and only that afternoon, she'd spent the entire lunch hour with her team, eating, laughing, shoving each other's faces into the food-

_Don't fool yourself. You are alone. Yes, they're your new family, yes, they're wonderful, but you know darn well they'll never replace what you've lost forever._

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

Now of all days, Ziva _would_ arrive at work early. The building was almost completely deserted. She sat at her desk for what seemed like an eternity before mustering the willpower to even turn on her computer.

A few e-mails popped up. Spam, spam, reminder that she hadn't used her Netflix account in-

who cares.

Then the only truly relevant message caught her attention, partly because it was in French, partly because of its subject line ("État de votre compte"), but mostly because in the "message from" box it listed Hopital Diaconesses. The name took a few seconds to register.

"Hello, Ziva." She glanced up, startled.

"What? Oh, hi Gibbs." He walked over to his desk, concerned. _Something is definitely on her mind._

Ziva turned back to the e-mail and mentally switched languages. Basically, it said that unless she informed them otherwise, they would bill her for another year's-

"Ziva?" She jumped. It was Gibbs again. "Something up? You look pretty serious."

She shook her head. "No. Just another bill." _Liar. You know it's not "just another" anything. It's your family. Even if they are that young and fragile._

She closed her eyes, flashing back more than fifteen years, watching tiny clusters float in the dishes that were their life support. That warm, protective feeling. Sharing it with her siblings…

She quickly closed her e-mail down before she started crying. _I'll think about this later. I'm at work now. I have to work._

But she couldn't shake the thought that between her melancholy the previous night and the e-mail this morning, it was as if Someone was trying to tell her something.

Perhaps, to tell her that it was finally time.


	2. Loss

Not mine.

Thank you all very much for your kind reviews. I may never get around to replying, but I do appreciate them all.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

Ziva had meant to talk to Gibbs about it, but the arrival of the rest of the team, followed shortly thereafter by a call-out, forced her to put a hold on her plans.

Only that night, when it was time to leave, did Ziva remember her plans. By then, it would have been nearly impossible to find a moment alone.

Why was she even trying? It wasn't like she needed his permission. Advice? She'd already decided, stirrup-of-the-moment as it was. _Wait, that's not right…_

She thought about visiting him at his house, but they would inevitably end up in his basement, and this _particular_ topic was hardly a safe one to breach? -broach? whatever- there.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"_Come on, it's a good idea, and you know it." _

_They were standing in the backyard, playing catch. At the moment, Tali had thrown the baseball so badly off-course that to retrieve it, Eli had left the siblings' earshot. _

"_Tali, you're fifteen. I don't think they'd even let you-" Ziva cut her brother off abruptly. "That's not the point. You shouldn't go around acting like we're about to die. That's not good for you." _

_Tali was about to reply when Eli returned, looking childishly pleased with himself at having recovered the ball. They were really too old for this sort of thing, according to Ari. Ziva had just finished her service in the IDF, Ari was almost done with college, Tali was starting high school, and Eli, well, enough said. _

_But it was nice to indulge in some immature pleasures now and then. They'd gotten little enough childhood the first time around. It felt good to unwind. _

_Too old to goof off and play catch, too young to be planning for death, or was that old enough to plan for the future and young enough to still enjoy life? _

_Either way, Tali was too old to still be that happy and innocent, and she was definitely too young to die. _

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

The pain of good memories gone long ago left Ziva gloomy before she even woke up. Not the best way to start a day. No time for a morning run, either. Half a world away, the clinic would be closing soon, and she needed to call them first.

The call was relatively straightforward, though, leaving enough time for a quick trip to her favorite café for a muffin and coffee. It was, of course, packed to the fins with the morning rush.

Strangely enough, every third person was either carrying an infant, of whatever age, or so pregnant they might as well have swallowed a beach ball.

_Okay, You don't have to shout._

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"Gibbs?"

Ziva's voice, sounding uncharacteristically hesitant, worried him. She'd been acting strange since- well, she'd been different ever since the death of her father.

"What's up, Ziver?" He did his best -not saying much- to sound comforting and understanding, rather than _spit-it-out-already_ or _why-are-you-so-distracted-lately_.

She hardly knew where to begin. That seemed oddly fitting, since try as she might, she never managed to recover the memory of when her baby sister had first mentioned the idea. She must have dismissed it at the time.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

_Ziva hadn't really expected, per se, that Tali would abandon her strange idea. More like hoped, wished, or some such. She should have known better, really. Tali kept her ideas to herself until she was absolutely certain. _

_She'd finally caved when Ari, after Tali found a clinic with no age restrictions, decided that it actually was a good idea. Naturally, Ziva had held out for a few more discussions to give the impression that she was changing her mind of her own accord. Tali had seemed convinced, but more joyful that they would go ahead with it. Ari had naturally seen right through her, she was sure, but kept it to himself. _

_Looking back, Ziva never could be quite certain why she was so reluctant. It _was_ a good idea. There was a distinct possibility that they could all be dead tomorrow. _

_Perhaps that was just it. _

_Following through with Tali's plan meant acknowledging the all-too-real possibility that her beloved brother and sister would one day be gone. She could face her own death easily. Never theirs. _


	3. Flash

Not mine. I would, however, like to dedicate this chapter jointly to ForeignMusicLyrics (there, I used your penname again, so you have to notice) and TodaysTheDay (an amazingly articulate anonymous reviewer). Each of you has guessed part of the whole answer. For the rest of you, this chapter should clear up some of those questions about what is happening to Ziva.

Oh, and try as I might, I cannot put together a coherent timeline of when what happened in Ziva's early life. Maybe it's supposed to remain shrouded in mystery?

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"Can we talk?"

"Sure."

Gibbs got out from behind his desk and, putting a hand on Ziva's shoulder, guided her towards the elevator. They had to wait for a handful of people to leave before they got in, as usual waiting for the elevator to move for a couple of seconds before Ziva flipped the switch. They stood there in silence for a moment, then:

"Everything okay?"

She nodded. "It's just- there's something I've been thinking about, and I- well, I kind of wanted to get your input first."

"Oh?"

It was difficult to even find a place to begin. She'd never even told the story to herself. In fact, she didn't even think she'd discussed it with her siblings after they were done.

They had never told Eli about what they'd done. Some things would forever remain secrets.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

They'd left for Paris a few days after the decision, right in the window between finding an excuse (one of Ari's college friends was getting married) and being able to complete the process before they would need to return.

They each carried only a backpack when they boarded the private jet. Only one of the perks of being rich, that they could just buy whatever they needed, when they need it. This trip _was_ an insurance policy, yes, but nobody said that they couldn't have fun while they were at it.

Tali was, naturally, beaming for much of the entire trip. Ziva was far more interested in staring out the window, trying to figure out where they were, what country they were over, and so on. Ari was entirely nonchalant about the whole thing, reading a book, or a motorcycle magazine, or some medical textbook to find out what exactly they could expect.

"Why are you so worried? It's not like you even have to do anything, other than-"

"Shut up."

"-which you already do anyway. If anybody has cause for concern, it's me or Tali. We-"

"Which is exactly my point. I can be worried about my baby sisters-"

Two well-aimed seat cushions quickly silenced Ari's characteristic over-protectiveness. The conversation quickly dissolved into helpless laughter.

They were still laughing hours later when they arrived at their chosen hotel. King-sized beds that were the epitome of comfy, a giant-screen TV, surround sound, a hot tub, custom-order room service, the whole works.

You know, all the comforts of home.

They'd each brought exactly one change of clothes, and the hotel provided all the soap, shampoo, toothbrushes, and such one could ever need, or even want. Tonight was for having fun on their father's dime, for pampering themselves, spending time with each other, enjoying what the hotel had to offer.

Tomorrow, they would go forth and conquer the city, gathering whatever they would need for the next few months.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"So, what kind of donor are you looking for?"

They had just finished watching The Sound of Music, with Ari naturally rolling his eyes and groaning every time someone burst into song. Which was of course saying quite a bit.

Ziva shrugged. "Male."

Tali rolled her eyes in a perfect imitation of her brother. "Come on- hair color, eye color, I.Q.-" Ari cut in. "Actually, there's not much evidence that intelligence is genetic."

"I suppose you're right. I mean, look at us."

"You could be insulting any or all of us, so I'm just going to let that slide."

"True. You're such a killjoy, you know that, Ziva?"

Ziva quickly returned to the original subject. "What do I want in a donor? Hm, I'm caught between someone who looks Israeli so, you know, they look like people at home, or someone who looks completely different, because some combinations can be really cool."

"So, you have no idea."

"I guess I'll just look at the pictures and see who catches my eye."

Ari chuckled. "Well, I'm not about to start worrying. Whatever the woman looks like, any kid of mine is going to be awesome. They'll bring me binders of women, and I'll probably just pick one who looks like you guys."

Tali gagged. "You know, if we were doing this the normal way, you two would never be so cavalier about this. I take that back; _you_, Ari, would just get with the nearest skirt and have her drop off your bundle of joy nine months later."

Ziva was struck speechless for several seconds at her baby sister's audacity. "Ari, you're a bad influence on our sister."

Tali gave a hugely exaggerated yawn. "I _do_ think I'll go to bed now."

"Oh, no you don't. We fly into Paris of all places, and the first thing you guys wanted to do was watch that songfest for the millionth time, and you know what? I'm a nice big brother and I go along with it. Now it's my turn."

"You want to watch one of your movies? Don't we get enough violence at home?"

Ari fake-smiled at her. "Haha. Cute. Now go get the popcorn."

All joking aside, five minutes into some shoot-em-up film from thirty years ago, all three of them were huddled together on one of the beds, arms and blankets wrapped around each other. The bowl of popcorn had been abandoned on the floor.

Sometimes, it was just nice to be with each other, watching violence, but safe from it.


	4. Turmoil

Still don't own it.

Okay, this might get a little -medically detailed? So consider yourself warned.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"What do you think?"

Ziva looked up from her book to see Tali twirling around in an elegant dark blue gown.

"It's beautiful, Tali."

"You look like an overdressed butterfly, kid."

"Ari!"

"Hey, I was just agreeing with you."

Ziva considered her sister for a moment and had to agree that he was actually right for once.

The dress would probably be called sleeveless, yet attached to the straps were long, billowing, gauzy folds of semitransparent blue material which could not help but give the appearance of wings. Looking closer, Ziva noticed that the blue was swirled with purple which appeared when the light hit it right, and that gold threads decorated each seam. _Tali, princess of the butterflies._

Mentally freezing an image of her sister, Ziva piled her hair in tight curls on top of her head, put her in stilettos that barely touched the ground, and added a slight breeze that made her look like she could actually fly.

_Yes, my sister, you're my little butterfly._

Ari had gotten himself a suit, not even bothering to check what it would look like, just getting measurements taken and paying for delivery to their hotel in a couple of days.

Ziva had picked out a considerably simpler dress. Dark green, strapless. A few silver beads.

Both older siblings felt that Tali was getting spoiled, but neither of them really minded. She was so spoilable. It wasn't like anybody else would do it.

Formal outfits accounted for, they quickly set about acquiring normal clothing. Two weeks' worth, give or take. Their hotel had a complimentary laundry service, but it couldn't hurt to have extra.

Exhausted, they stopped at a local restaurant for dinner, having taken breakfast to go and bypassed lunch entirely. While waiting for their meal to arrive, the girls stuffed themselves on appetizer bread, trying not to choke as they laughed themselves silly at Ari's attempts -key word: attempts- to chat up their waitress.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

Despite the best-laid plans, it took a few more days before they all agreed that they were ready. Ziva later reflected that, considering they were siblings, it was a miracle they ever agreed.

At last, it was time to get started. Weeks of testing and hormone treatments for the girls before the actual procedures.

Ari felt extremely lucky by comparison.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"Okay, so today, we're just going to draw some blood, then it'll take a couple of days to analyze the hormones- you know, to pinpoint exactly where you are in your cycles."

Ziva managed to hide her embarrassment, glad she wasn't having this conversation with her mother, but over in the opposite corner, Tali gagged and rolled her eyes. _Well, Tali, what did you expect? This was your idea. _

At least Ari wasn't in the room to make awkward comments. It was so unfair how easy he had this by comparison. She doubted she would ever hear the end of this.

Once they had gotten their blood drawn, they had to sign a few dozen more forms, which were covered in legalese for "I get what you're going to do to me and I'm okay with it. I won't sue you if I die."

Immediately upon their egress from the exam room, they bumped into a smiling Ari. "You all done?"

"You're enjoying this way too much, Ari."

"What's up with _you_, Ari? _You_ all done yet?"

"With my end of it? Yep. Now I've got to look through this" -he held up yes, a binder with donor profiles- "and pick the lucky lady. Or ladies. They said I could pick a couple."

"The way you're talking, it's like you're in a store, comparison shopping."

"Well, I _am_ purchasing DNA, so…"

Ziva shrugged. "Time to go?"

"Not quite." One of the fertility workers handed her and Tali each a binder much like Ari's. "These are profiles of all our available male donors. You don't need to decide anytime soon. It'll be quite some time before we can harvest and then fertilize your-"

"Yeah, we know. Come on, ladies. Let's get going."

While they were walking across the parking lot, Ziva chastised her brother. "You don't need to be rude. They're being nice."

Ari just shrugged as he unlocked his motorcycle's saddlebags. "Here." He fastened Tali's undersized helmet under her chin before donning his own. Ziva rolled her eyes at her brother before climbing onto her own motorcycle. They'd purchased the bikes a couple of days before, and they seemed able to hold up pretty well, considering their drivers' techniques.

Back at the hotel that night, Ziva lay awake, comforted by the sound of her siblings breathing. For whatever reason, she was unable to join them, tired as she was.

_Should we really be doing this? You're not supposed to have kids like this. We'd be better off fighting terrorists and making the world a safer place for the kids you'll be having years from now, with someone you love, when you're married, when you can relax._

Yeah, right, like you'll ever be able to stop worrying. Like you'll ever be able to get married. Ever be able to have kids. They'll never be safe.

Tali would never be safe.

Ziva tried to put herself in her sister's perspective for a bit and shuddered. To have both of her siblings putting their lives on the line, vanishing for months at a time, never being able to explain what they had been doing…

No wonder Tali was so scared.

Tali would be fine. They didn't need her to do this. But it couldn't hurt to indulge her.

Ziva, though, knew she should go through with it for her siblings' sake. They deserved to have a reminder of her.

Ari-

she cut herself off before she could delve too deeply into the prospect of her brother's death. It was all too real a possibility. The thought of losing him was unbearable.

Great. Now she _really_ couldn't sleep.

A few meaningless, thoughtless minutes later, she gave up her denial and climbed across into her brother's bed, snuggling up against him.

She was asleep in seconds.


	5. Resolution

I do not own this. I also have no real knowledge of what the procedures entail, so forgive any medical mistakes. I'm just going with what I know and what makes sense.

That awkward moment when you were watching Lost Tapes and switched to a new NCIS:LA that involved Bigfoot hunters…

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"Ooh, she's cute."

"Shut up. This is hard enough-"

"Ari, you and I both know you'll be doing exactly this when it's my turn."

Tali laughed in response without even taking her eyes off the screen. Lion King. Again.

"Fine."

Ari laid the binder flat on the bed and rolled over onto his stomach. Imitating him, Ziva inspected the two biographies the binder currently displayed.

"Blonde's cute, redhead, not so much."

"You have to admit, she's kind of hot."

"But look at her stated reason- closest she'll ever come to kids because she's joining law enforcement and never plans on having a family of her own."

"So? At least I wouldn't have to worry about her trying to get involved in their lives-"

"_You're_ career-driven, Ari. You should find a girl who'll cancel that out."

"Cancel out our own traits, huh? Tali would need Manson, and _you_ would need Einstein."

The conversation disintegrated into a pillow fight disintegrated into a mattress fight.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

It was a few days later that they got the call. Tali answered the hotel phone, reporting to her siblings that "they said it's time for the magic to happen".

_Who are you and where did you hide my sweet, naïve, innocent baby sister?_

Hours of teeth-gnashing consternation after the eventual resolution of their fluffy conflict, an exhausted Ari, hair tousled and bruise darkening under his eye, had finally selected two women from the binder. A blonde Icelander and a woman who looked a bit like Ziva and Tali's mother, oddly enough.

The girls were in no hurry to choose their donors. They hadn't even started the hormone treatments yet. No rush.

Tali had removed some of the pages from hers and put them in the recycling bin. There was always some reason: he's too old, he looks mean, his hair clashes with my skin (Ziva thought she was probably making that up), and so on. Ziva had barely even glanced at the profiles, postponing the decision until she would actually need it.

"Hey, Ziva, it's time to go."

Ziva put down the washcloth she'd been using to, yet again, clean the rugburn on her shoulder and dried the wound carefully before applying a bandage. _My wonderful brother will pay for that later. _

She envisioned sabotaging his new motorcycle, but that would only work if Tali wasn't on it at the time to get hurt in the process, and anyway, he could just get a new one the next day. Or "borrow" hers. But he apparently liked the red better.

Ziva would never admit it to Ari, but the red trim on her brother's bike suited her far better than the pretty purple decorating her own. Purple was more Taliesque than her own style.

Red.

Blood, fire, anger.

Words to live by as far as the older siblings were concerned. Let their butterfly of a sister keep her blinders on just a little bit longer.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

Tali flinched as the needle pierced her shoulder.

"Sorry." The nurse pushed the plunger on the syringe before withdrawing it and bandaging Tali up with gauze and medical tape.

"You might want to get used to that, baby sister, or you're never going to get through this."

"Easy for you to say, Miss Didn't-notice-she'd-been-shot-until-two-hours-late r."

It was true. During her first year in the IDF, Ziva's unit had been attacked, leaving her with a bullet in her left thigh. Only when they'd returned to base and Ziva'd gotten in the shower had she noticed the blood soaking her uniform. The wound had healed nicely, leaving only a small, round scar, but the story managed to resurface every other time the siblings started bickering. That is, every hour or two.

Having completed the first treatments, the nurse proceeded to hand them each a Styrofoam pack of medicine vials along with instruction sheets for use. It was simple, really. Stab. Push. Repeat. Ad. Nauseum. Et. Cetera.

You get the photo.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

In the shadowy elevator, Gibbs couldn't help staring at Ziva as she explained what had been going on. Now he understood what she'd meant when she'd said she didn't have a simple answer. _She's had kids, and nieces and nephews, for a decade and a half. That does complicate things. _

"You gonna do it?"

Ziva seemed startled at the question.

"Are you going to commit to caring for these kids, carrying them, giving birth, raising them? It's not a decision to be made lightly."

Ziva nodded. "I know. But I've had fifteen years to think about this. They shouldn't have to sit there in suspended mimation when I can take care of them."

"Animation."

"What?"

"It's 'suspended anima-' never mind."


	6. Transition

I do not own this. This is repetitive…

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"Why didn't you tell me you have kids?"

"Well, it's not like- you know, I donated 23 chromosomes in the heat of the moment, and I've been paying to keep a metal tank full of liquid nitrogen for fifteen years. Not exactly standard parenting."

"Heat and cold. A little like my father's style."

Ziva rolled her entire head to glare directly at Tony. "_Your_ father at least let you do the whole _live_ thing, not stick you in suspended animation for a decade and a half."

"I'm impressed," Tony chuckled. "You actually got one right."

"Only with my help."

It rapidly became Gibbs' turn for a Ziva!glare.

Abby was far more concerned with logistics. "So, are you getting them mailed back, or just getting them implanted over there, or-"

"Actually, I'm going to go back to Paris and pick them up myself. Don't really trust the postal system with my offspring, you know, and I can't just fly back and forth across the Atlantic a pillion times-"

"Million. Or billion." McGee would have continued, but Ziva cut him off. "Anyway, I found a clinic that can do the whole implantation thing, so I just have to bring them back here. I'm taking next weekend to fly there and get them."

"Want company?" Tony couldn't help but grin. The whole situation was rather humorous, in his opinion. Paris of all places, and Ziva had still resorted to artificial means of conception.

"No thank you, Tony. We already did that."

"Anyway." Abby cut them off before the conversation declined further. "When are you going, again?"

"Next weekend."

"Isn't that awfully soon? I mean, it's a big decision-"

"I'm not having them implanted right away. That'll probably take a couple of months."

"Even so, it's a big step to take. Like getting a tattoo. Permanent and life-changing."

"Except a tattoo only affects you, Abby. And this is fifteen years overdue."

Abby shrugged. "The question still stands, though: do you want company? Obviously not Tony-"

"Hey!"

"-but why not? You shouldn't have to be alone."

_I won't be, Abby, but if I am, you won't make a difference, even though you're one of my best friends. _

The faces of her lost siblings were burned irrevocably across the Paris skyline.

"Thank you, Abby, but I'll be fine."

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

It felt like déjà vu all over again, as they say. Leaving for Paris. Little to no luggage. Family.

Except she was flying from Washington in a cramped seat instead of from Tel Aviv on a private jet, with a backpack and a rolling suitcase instead of just a backpack, and she would only have her family for the return trip.

Oh, yeah, and different family, because the ones she'd been with previously were dead.

Gone. Lost. Not here anymore.

How many ways could she avoid admitting it? That her family was dead? That she'd killed her own brother? That she would never see them or speak to them again, unless in the afterlife? Not that her hopes for that were terribly high. There was too much blood on her hands and-

What hope could there possibly be for her father and Ari? All her love and prayers couldn't touch the evil they'd wrought.

Ziva had no idea how long she'd been lost in contemplation, but when she looked down, the light was fading over the Atlantic. An endless blue expanse of water, as far as the curvature of the earth permitted the eye to see.

_What world that is, I do not know, even when it's my own planet. _

She closed her eyes and drifted off as the plane continued its journey eastward.

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

"_Bedtime, little ladies. We've got that wedding to go to tomorrow." _

"_Do we have to go? I was hoping that was just a nice excuse to spend a few months in Paris." _

"_Come on, Tali- when else are you going to wear that pretty little butterfly dress? And Abba's going to check up on us sometime; I don't really relish trying to fake something that big. Now come here and I'll give you your shot before you hit the sack." _

"_I can do it myself, Ari. I don't need your overprotective-" _

"_Trust me, I'll back off when you no longer need me." _

"_I need _you_, Ari. I don't need your helicoptering." _

"_I have a compromise," Ziva announced. "_I_'ll do it." _

"_Fine- ouch!" _

"_There, now we're all set. Good night." _

V^V^V^V^V^V^V

_The weeks blurred by, filled with happy bickering, junk food, movies, and hormone shots. Ziva's only real memories were of Ari's friend's wedding -not much to remember, really- and the report from the clinic that the embryos had been made, tested, per request, for gender and blood type, and frozen. _

_Then it was the girls' turn. _

_Ziva's memories of the egg retrieval procedure were blurry, mostly glancing over at Tali, or Ari stroking her hair and telling her she wouldn't have to lie there much longer, and that it would all be worth it. _

_Of course he thought so. He already had his kids, with little to no effort on his part. _

_Tali had wanted to watch the actual conception, but the rules didn't allow that, so they only glimpsed their offspring through a viewing window into the actual lab. But Ziva could still remember how they looked: tiny clusters of cells happily (it seemed) floating in their dishes. _

_She'd joined her siblings for a group hug. _

_A few days later was Tali's birthday. Sixteen. A wonderful age, at least in theory. Ziva had gone into the IDF the day after. She wasn't even sure they'd had a party. _

_They'd gone to the top viewing platform of the Eiffel Tower and looked out over the city as the sun set. Ziva had thought, and Ari had strangely enough voiced the same opinion later, that the city was beautiful, but it was more beautiful to be together, happy, and safe. _

_Three days later, they'd returned home. _

_Nine days later, Tali was dead. _


End file.
